29 March 2016

At the recent Mobile World Congress the EU unveiled its vision for 5G and its goal to become a global leader in 5G deployment.
Shortly after the MWC (16/03/2016), EIF and Michal Boni, MEP and EIF Steering Committee Member, brought together industry and policy-makers to identify the policy and regulatory requirements needed to overcome fragmentation, foster inter-sector collaboration and make the vision for Europe a reality in a realistic time frame so that Europe does not lag behind other regions of the world. 

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Can Europe be a global 5G leader?

In order to assure fast 5G deployment in Europe, Michal Boni MEP encouraged the cooperation of all stakeholders, especially in the areas of research and telecommunications. He also noted the need of creating excellent conditions for businesses to invest into 5G.

Stephan Litjens, Vice President Innovation Steering at Nokia, spoke about the 5G ecosystem and its players. He noted the importance of building a clear European 5G roadmap to ensure the continent’s leadership in this area. He also called for a friendlier 5G investment climate.

Philippe Lucas, Vice President, Standardisation and Eco-systems Development at Orange, encouraged vertical industries to get actively involved into 5G deployment and standardisation processes. He also noted that the first 5G commercial launches will be available by 2020.

Ian Miller, Director for Radio Access Network at Telefonica Corporation, noted that 5G needs to allow operators to densify network in a sustainable way. He also called for operators to be able to invest more into network rollout vs spectrum fees. He also asked for opportunities to showcase 5G possibilities to stimulate the interest among the 5G ecosystem players.

Mario Campolargo, Director, Net Futures at DG CONNECT, European Commission, spoke about the strategic vision of the 5G Public Private Partnership. He noted the importance of building a global unified standard and vertical sectors involvement in the building of 5G networks. He also noted that the common European 5G strategy still needs to be developed. He stressed the fact that Europe cannot afford to be left behind in what seems to be most important transformation of society since the industrial revolution.

Alexander Geurtz, VP for Strategic Portfolio Development at SES, was a first respondent at the debate.

To better understand the European 5G vision, we also asked the speakers what more can be done to ensure the EU's global 5G leadership position. Watch the video to see what they had to say.

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